On 11 May 1985, the last day of the league season, a teenage spectator was killed at St Andrew's stadium in a Second Division clash between Birmingham City and Leeds United in another incident of hooliganism which continued to blight English football at home and abroad.

On 29 May, at the European Cup Final in Brussels, rioting by Liverpool fans led to the collapse of a wall and 39 spectators (most of them Italian) were crushed or trampled to death in the panic.

This tragedy was seen by many as a wake-up call for English clubs to improve the state of their grounds and take more drastic safety measures to bring an end to problems which had been plaguing the game for years without any effective action being taken.

On 29 May 1985, less than three weeks after the Bradford fire, 39 spectators (mostly Italian) were killed on the terraces of Heysel Stadium in Brussels, when a wall collapsed at the European Cup final between Liverpool and Juventus.

[2] 15 September 1984: Clive Allen scores twice against his former club as Tottenham beat Queens Park Rangers 5–0 to displace North London rivals Arsenal from top spot.

[3] 24 September 1984: Milk Cup holders Liverpool are held to a goalless draw in the first leg of their second round tie with Stockport County at Edgeley Park.

John Wark scores a hat-trick in Liverpool's 4–0 win over Lech Poznań and Garth Crooks bags three for the second time in eight days as Spurs beat Braga 6–0.

[8] 24 October 1984: In only his second match back following a knee operation, Ian Rush scores a hat-trick in Liverpool's 3–1 European Cup win over Benfica.

In the UEFA Cup, QPR beat Partizan Belgrade 6–2 at Highbury but Tottenham lose in Bruges with Glenn Hoddle sent off and Manchester United draw with PSV in Eindhoven.

[9] 20 November 1984: In the Milk Cup fourth round, Second Division Grimsby Town cause a shock by winning at Everton through a last-minute header by Paul Wilkinson.

[10] 1 December 1984: Manchester United and Arsenal narrow the gap on leaders Everton who are held 1–1 by Sheffield Wednesday and have top scorer Adrian Heath carried off with a serious knee injury.

In the Second Division, Portsmouth and Blackburn Rovers draw a top of the table clash 2–2 at Fratton Park with the home side fighting back after gifting the visitors two own goals.

[11] 22 December 1984: Tottenham win 2–1 at Norwich to reclaim leadership of the First Division as Everton are beaten 4–3 at home by Chelsea, for whom recent signing Gordon Davies scores a hat-trick.

At White Hart Lane, Mark Aizlewood earns Charlton Athletic a replay with a scrambled equaliser after seeing his initial penalty saved by Ray Clemence.

[12] 26 January 1985: Third Division York City cause the biggest FA Cup upset of the season – a last minute Keith Houchen penalty gives them victory over Arsenal at Bootham Crescent.

[13] 16 February 1985: Everton end Telford's FA Cup adventure with a 3–0 win at Goodison Park but York score an 86th minute equaliser to take Liverpool to a replay.

In the FA Cup fifth round, Southampton suffer a surprise home defeat to Barnsley while a late goal by Alan Sunderland gives Ipswich a 3–2 win over Sheffield Wednesday.

In the UEFA Cup, Manchester United narrowly beat Videoton but a Steve Perryman own goal against Real Madrid consigns Tottenham to their first ever home defeat in European competition.

In FA Cup replays, West Ham beat Wimbledon 5–1 with Tony Cottee scoring three while Watford and Luton draw 2–2 after extra time at Vicarage Road.

[15] 13 March 1985: Another explosion of football violence occurs as Millwall hooligans riot before, during and after their team's FA Cup quarter-final tie at Luton which ends in a 1–0 win for the home side.

The significant action takes place in the space of five minutes at the start of the second half as Gordon Chisholm deflects an Asa Hartford shot into his own net for the only goal and Sunderland's Clive Walker misses a penalty.

[15] 30 March 1985: Two goals by reserve midfielder Kevin Richardson give Everton a 2–1 win at Southampton which takes them three points clear of Tottenham, who lose 2–0 at home to Aston Villa.

An 85th minute Kevin Sheedy free kick cancels out Ricky Hill's first half strike and Derek Mountfield scores the winner near the end of extra time.

Coventry boost their survival hopes with a 2–1 win over West Bromwich Albion but Sunderland remain in deep trouble despite holding Manchester United to a 2–2 draw at Old Trafford.

Blackburn lose 1–0 at Charlton so Manchester City move into the driving seat with a 2–1 win at Portsmouth while Leeds keep their faint hopes alive by beating Oxford 1–0.

Fifty-six people are burnt to death and more than 200 others injured at Valley Parade, Bradford in a fire caused by a discarded cigarette which set light to waste beneath the wooden main stand.

United played with only ten men following the 77th minute dismissal of defender Kevin Moran for a foul on Peter Reid, the first ever sending-off in an FA Cup final.

The only downside to their promotion was the departure soon afterwards of manager Jim Smith to QPR, leaving Maurice Evans to try to build an Oxford side capable of defying the odds and surviving at the highest level.

The second promotion place went to Millwall, who had a happy end to the season just weeks after they had made the headlines for all the wrong reasons after hundreds of their fans ran riot in an FA Cup tie at Luton Town.

Newly promoted York City finished eighth in the league but made headlines in the FA Cup by beating Arsenal in the fourth round and taking Liverpool to a replay in the fifth.